Cal Neva Resort & Casino to open May 2016

The 100th birthday celebration for Frank Sinatra took place earlier in December but fans were missing the experience of enjoying the Cal Neva Resort & Casino, a venue in Lake Tahoe (Crystal Bay) that was once owned by the man himself. Closed since September 2013 for renovations, the Cal Neva had hoped to reopen on December 12th, which is the birthday of Sinatra. However, construction is taking longer than anticipated and the date was unable to be reached.

The property now has an opening date of May 26th, with an international hotel operator handling the property. Criswell Radovan LLC ended up having unforeseen construction problems with the project, including a great deal of asbestos. Utilities had to be replaced as well due to the building being so old.

Originally opening in 1926, the Cal Neva has struggled over the past few years due to the Northern California Indian casinos enticing players from the area. The venue, purchased by Criswell in 2013 was closed to start the makeover process.

The developer thought the project would be completed by late 2014 but financing for the renovations was not acquired until November of that year. The renovations reportedly will cost $49 million. When the venue does reopen, the resort will be operated by Starwood Hotels as part of their boutique hotel luxury collection. The hotel tower will have 191 guest rooms spread over ten stories, with a style based on the era of Sinatra.